14 Mar 2024
NVL Preview 16th and 17th March
That’s no more so than at the bottom end of Women’s Division 1, where Bristol, Dartford and London Inter Crocs are all battling hard to avoid the drop.
It looks to be the proverbial six-pointer on Sunday when Bristol (in ninth) take on the Crocs (in seventh) in what could be a critical match for both sides.
A straight sets win for the West Country team would see them move level on points with their relegation rivals with a game in hand, while a win for the capital club would see them take a giant leap towards safety.
At the other end of the table, Richmond look destined to finish third as they are nine points behind the top two, but they could put some pressure on Stockport, who have played a game more, when they travel to bottom side MK City.
They will be confident as they come into the weekend as their last outing brought a 3-1 victory over the Inter Crocs.
MK will also host Sheild finalists Leicester Athena on Saturday and though they East Midlands club are not yet mathematically safe, they will be able to put some more distance between them and the drop zone should they prevail.
Unbeaten Team Sunderland travel to Sheffield in Division 2 North – a match-up between the leaders and second-placed team.
The North East side have only dropped one set all season but are likely to face one of their hardest challenges so far, with second place Sheffield having only lost one game themselves – when the two sides met on Wearside in November.
The South Yorkshire club also make the short trip to Leeds Gorse on Sunday, knowing that if
they are able to win both fixtures, it will close the gap to just two points.
For their part, Leeds are second bottom, but a win could see them move up to as high as fifth in the table if they were to secure a straight sets success.
Current fifth-placed side Tamworth’s are also in action, and they could go level on points with opponents Manchester Marvels Mayhem, who are in third, with a win.
Norwich Spikers have a tricky weekend in Division 2 South with games against the top two teams, Herts and Essex Trinity.
All three teams come into the weekend off the back of straight set victories in their last matches.
Trinity could go top of the table on Saturday with victory, but that could be just for 24 hours should Herts replicate that success on Sunday.
An Oxford versus Cambridge match sees Oxford Eagles, sitting fourth, travel to seventh place Cambridge Rhinos.
Loughborough Students will hope to get out of the relegation places with a victory over bottom side Coventry and Warwick Riga 2.
Division 2 South has all eight teams in action.
Cardiff Falcons host Richmond 2 on Saturday, with the rest of the teams playing on Sunday.
Ashcombe Dorking welcome second-placed Team South Wales to Surrey, while Sussex Dolphins have a tough match against top of the table, unbeaten London Giants who will assure themselves of the title with victory.
Bristol 2 and Bedminster have an important derby match in their chances of survival, and a win for either would boost their hopes of staying in the division.
A Triangular fixture in Division 3 North has Manchester Marvels Magic, York Vikings and Manchester Liberators going head to head, with the latter out to seal second place behind runaway leaders The Miners Doncaster.
Nottingham Rockets host Darkstar Derbyshire and Newcastle Staffs in Division 3 Central on Saturday, with the West Midlands side having the chance to move within one point of top of the table Black Country.
It is huge weekend in Division 3 South, with no less than three triangulars taking place.
Onyx, Essex Estonians and Spelthorne Sharks will all play each other at the Kingston Aldridge Academy.
Onyx could go 14 games unbeaten if they are successful this weekend, which would be enough for them to claim Division 3 South East title, if results go in their favour.
Cambridge, Dartford Warriors and Reading Aces will look to improve their own positions in the table.
Richmond 3, Tendring and Sussex Dolphins also meet, with the Essex club no doubt hoping to capitalise on playing the bottom two.
Essex Blaze will bid to celebrate their title success this weekend with another win when they face Weymouth in their third to last game.
After claiming their second victory of the season last weekend, Coventry and Warwick Riga host Manchester Marvels at Centre AT7.
The 3-0 victory win over Weymouth may have come too late for them to climb out of the relegation zone, but they will nevertheless be keen to finish on a high.
Cambridge ARU will welcome London Aces to North Cambridge Academy as the capital side look to climb back up the table after dropping to fourth.
Tamworth Spartans – who will be the Marvels’ second game of the weekend – are also desperate for points during the run-in as they need to win all three of their last three matches if they have any chance of survival in the national second tier.
A top of the table that is too close to call in Division 2 North sees the top four teams separated by just two points.
The weekend sees three of those teams competing this weekend with Lincoln (third), Hull Thunder (first) and Darkstar Derbyshire (fourth) all looking to get one over their rivals.
Hull host Darkstar in the tie of the weekend, where they will look to put five points between them and their visitors.
The Humberside club carry the momentum from their win against Liverpool into the match whereas the Derbyshire side will be keen to bounce back from their 3-1 loss to Sheffield.
Loughborough Students will need to win this weekend against bottom team Everton Dugongs if they are to ease their relegation worries as they are only ahead of Harrogate on set quotient.
The North Yorkshire side currently occupy the final relegation spot and will have a tricky match against third place Lincoln.
In Division 2 Central, all eight teams are in action, with MK City starting the weekend against London Baks.
Dartford Crossers will face Cambridge, who are coming off a great 3-2 victory over league leaders Hounslow last week.
Second-placed Newmarket will look to carry the momentum of a 3-0 victory over Dartford last weekend when they take on Hounslow, who even though the Cambridgeshire side can’t catch them, need the points to maximise their title chances.
Should the Londoners claim a maximum points win, only three victories out of three from London Baks could then deny them overall top spot.
Wombourne host Norwich Spikers in the division’s final match of the weekend.
Exeter Storm have a busy weekend in Division 2 South, as City of Bristol and Spelthorne Lions both travel to the Riverside.
They will have the chance to close the gap slightly to top of the table Bristol if they win both matches – but the games are running out.
For unbeaten Bristol, their destiny remains in their own hands and they will bid to take another step towards being crowned champions as they host Wiltshire Mavericks.
Division 3 North West has two triangulars, with Liverpool U18 hosting Manchester Marvels Marauders and Chester on Saturday.
Sunday also sees Newcastle Staffs host Wigan Seahawks and Manchester Marvels Mavericks for matches that could be crucial in the title race.
Nottingham Rockets host another triangular in Division 3 North Central with Coventry and Warwick Riga 2 and Leeds Gorse 2 both travelling to the East Midlands.
Sheffield, meanwhile, will look to cause an upset and do Kings of the Court Boston a favour with a victory over York Vikings.
Worthing host Urbond Portsmouth and Weymouth Waves on Sunday in Division 3 South West looking to consolidate second spot.
Two straight sets successes would strengthen their position considerably, but they would still be a full seven points behind leaders Southampton, who are guaranteed to be champions if they prevail in their final game.
For all the fixtures across the country click here.
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